Blood lead levels.

[Harter66]

I tested 11 once . Told the doc what I did and admitted to being a little casual with drinks and things around the bench .
Not long after word I was layed off for about 5 months. During which time I did a lot more casting and shooting. I was down to 7 in 6 months . Turns out it was the old GI galvanized frames and oxidized lead based paint at work causing the issues.

Today I test about every other year and I'm at 3-4 .

Chelation can be accomplished self medicated with orange or grapefruit juice . A problem that can happen with medical grade is that it will start to draw long term exposure out of the bones and make it worse than it was to begin with.

Look at all of the possible exposures when you start looking at mitigation you might be surprised at where its coming from.

[45_Colt]

A possible cause of lead exposure & often overlooked is a vibratory tumbler, Richard Lee wrote about people who were around him, that were exposed to high levels.

No doubt, it is prudent to use mineral spirits in the corn/walnut to eliminate the dust. Works for me.

45_Colt

[bruce381]

LOL when i tested for fun was a ?? 12 or so the CAL OSHA called me to demand where I worked (think they saw a big pay day) told them retired and had a bullet fragment stuck in my spine from Vietnam they stopped calling.

[littlejack]

Had mine checked a couple months ago. Test results were "6". Doc said not to worry, they don't get concerned unless it's a lot higher than that.

[koger]

I have mine checked every year, and is also way below normal. I cast a lot of lead in a small shop, with a small fan blowing over the pot. Probably 1000# per year for the past 20+ years.

[imashooter2]

Lead has been all but eliminated from consumer products. As exposure falls, so do the “recommended limits" for blood lead levels.

That said, I want a doctor to tell me when I have a problem. I want real information. If my doctor told me I had a problem, or to modify my behavior with a lead blood level of 14 μg/dL I would find another doctor and tell him why.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Because I melt my own lead and cast my own boolits I was just curious so I asked the Dr for the test. When he told me the level he just asked how often I handled lead and I said only once in a while. He didn't seem overly concerned about the level and suggested I just take a break from it and not handle it too often. His words not mine. It was a phone apt so I'll talk to him more about it when I see him in person in a couple weeks. I only asked here because I'm not familiar with what might be considered a high level and how to get it lower.

I would suggest to look at the sanitation part of your procedures and find out where and how it's getting in your blood.

Also, one of the largest sources of inducing lead for us reloaders is
from tumbling fired brass with spent primers intact.
some of the dust coming from tumbling can have Lead styphnate from the primers.

Even though the levels you mention are not that serious to you,
it should also be stated that if young children are nearby that is not so good.

[justindad]

You might want to try chewing on spirulina tabs every day for a while.

At the end of first 2 years casting I went through roughly a 2 month supply of spirulina. My blood levels were 4. Orange juice is also said to help.
*
Ejecting spent primers and cleaning brass seems to be a more meaningful source of lead in your blood than casting.

[deces]

At the end of first 2 years casting I went through roughly a 2 month supply of spirulina. My blood levels were 4. Orange juice is also said to help.
*
Ejecting spent primers and cleaning brass seems to be a more meaningful source of lead in your blood than casting.

I actually started to enjoy the very mild sweet taste of the spirulina. For years I thought I had been exposed to high levels of lead. I did a blood test from my Dr and I was told I have no lead in my system, since then I think that test was garbage. Oh well.

[fredj338]

Because I melt my own lead and cast my own boolits I was just curious so I asked the Dr for the test. When he told me the level he just asked how often I handled lead and I said only once in a while. He didn't seem overly concerned about the level and suggested I just take a break from it and not handle it too often. His words not mine. It was a phone apt so I'll talk to him more about it when I see him in person in a couple weeks. I only asked here because I'm not familiar with what might be considered a high level and how to get it lower.

It is more important as to where you shoot. I have been casting & shooting lead bullets for 45y. My blood work came back under 10. I avoid indoor ranges at all cost. I do 99% of my shooting outdoors. Even if it means driving an hour each way, which I do at least 2x a month.

[AlaskaMike]

One thing I keep seeing in these threads is that people seem to think that above "X" level, you're in serious trouble, and anywhere below that level, there's absolutely nothing to worry about. It just doesn't work like that, it's not a hard threshold.

Like any potentially hazardous exposure, you need to look at it as intensity vs. duration. High intensity exposure can cause problems quickly. Low to moderate exposure can still cause problems if it's sustained over a long period of time.

Just something to think about. We all want things to be extremely simple, but reality is rarely like that.

[1006]

Over period of 7 years mine went from a value of 12, to 15, to 17. During this time, I got more and more careful, nothing seemed to help, until I quit shooting indoors. Within a year I was back down below 10. I have never been a caster, just a reloader, and used to shoot about 1000rounds a month at indoor ranges- fairly modern, newer ranges.

[45_Colt]

Over period of 7 years mine went from a value of 12, to 15, to 17. During this time, I got more and more careful, nothing seemed to help, until I quit shooting indoors. Within a year I was back down below 10. I have never been a caster, just a reloader, and used to shoot about 1000rounds a month at indoor ranges- fairly modern, newer ranges.

Yes, indoor ranges can be an issue. Good ventilation is a must. And even more important is that the air intake is behind the shooting line. With the exhaust down range. Yes, I've actually been in a range where the exhaust was behind the line. No thanks.

On the other side of the coin, lead can come from elsewhere. For a period of time in my career I worked in a building that at one time was wall-to-wall lino machines. They printed greeting cards. Yea, didn't take but a year or two to have blood levels that were very high.

Short term memory loss and aching arms were the biggest issue. And it was for everyone that worked in this particular area. The memory loss was spooky. As it was, a conversion would take place, then 5 minutes later, one or both participants would deny it ever occurred.

Freaky when one of the two, was like, what? We just talked about this... No we didn't...

Other areas of the building already had the air duct work sealed by spraying the duct interiors with liquid latex. So it was a known issue. Sucked.

45_Colt

[John Guedry]

I have been told to drink lots of milk after handling/casting.

[JSnover]

I have been told to drink lots of milk after handling/casting.

I don't have a medical or scientific background but there could be some truth to that. The Dutch used to give windmill employees 'milk rations.' Milk was thought to protect them from arsenic and possibly some other toxic materials at the mills.

[barnetmill]

I don't have a medical or scientific background but there could be some truth to that. The Dutch used to give windmill employees 'milk rations.' Milk was thought to protect them from arsenic and possibly some other toxic materials at the mills.

Most of us including myself forget that there are people that cannot drink fresh milk. Not sure if the milk has to be fresh for it to detoxify. And I am also unsure if it is true.

[littlejack]

A little off topic, but in the shops I worked in, drinking milk was supposed to be the go to remedy if someone was to get sick welding galvanized metal.

[Idz]

A quote from www.aiha.org June 2022 "Under current OSHA lead standards, the medical removal level is ≥60 µg/dL in general industry and ≥50 µg/dL in construction, and the blood lead level required for an employee to return to lead-exposed work after being medically removed is <40 µg/dL. A discussion of the health effects of lead exposure in the Federal Register notice announcing the ANPRM states that blood lead levels as low as 5 µg/dL “have been associated with impaired kidney and reproductive function, high blood pressure, and cognitive effects attributed to prenatal exposure.” Research has also shown that adults with blood lead levels of 5-19 µg/dL performed more poorly on neurocognitive and neuropsychologic assessments than adults with levels below 5 µg/dL." Old research looked for effects of lead and couldn't find much effect below about 100 ug/dL. But modern biased researchers claim to find effects at much lower levels.
There is a lot of politics and not much science involved in modern 'standards'. It seems non-woke things such as bullets, oil, and gas are deemed hazardous by woke 'researchers' funded by woke bureaucrats. I preferred the old days when the chemistry lab had a death head on dangerous stuff. Now every chemical is considered deadly except for marijuana.

[deces]

A quote from www.aiha.org June 2022 "Under current OSHA lead standards, the medical removal level is ≥60 µg/dL in general industry and ≥50 µg/dL in construction, and the blood lead level required for an employee to return to lead-exposed work after being medically removed is <40 µg/dL. A discussion of the health effects of lead exposure in the Federal Register notice announcing the ANPRM states that blood lead levels as low as 5 µg/dL “have been associated with impaired kidney and reproductive function, high blood pressure, and cognitive effects attributed to prenatal exposure.” Research has also shown that adults with blood lead levels of 5-19 µg/dL performed more poorly on neurocognitive and neuropsychologic assessments than adults with levels below 5 µg/dL." Old research looked for effects of lead and couldn't find much effect below about 100 ug/dL. But modern biased researchers claim to find effects at much lower levels.
There is a lot of politics and not much science involved in modern 'standards'. It seems non-woke things such as bullets, oil, and gas are deemed hazardous by woke 'researchers' funded by woke bureaucrats. I preferred the old days when the chemistry lab had a death head on dangerous stuff. Now every chemical is considered deadly except for marijuana.

My lead levels must be off, because I'm having a hard time comprehending the studies you are referring to.

[firefly1957]

I am not sure when all the standards changed it was mid 1990's when a fellow gun club member that worked for AC Delco Flint Michigan found out his lead was really high . He was in production where circuit boards where ran though the solder bath to be soldiered and blood work was done but he was NEVER shown with high blood levels of lead. A trip to his dentist showed a dark line under his gums it was from lead and he tested very high though his personal doctor . He was overweight and they put him though chelation therapy , he said this was the worst thing he had ever been though ! After chelation therapy he gained a lot more weight had bariatric surgery and it shut down his entire digestive system causing death .

GM blamed him for the high lead levels as he would smoke ,eat, and drink at his work station .